War: Gaza: Israel surrounds, cuts in half, southern Palestinian enclave

The press* is gasping and grasping to report developments in Israel's defense assault on hyperfanatical Hamas which had long supplied a steady rain of rockets on Israeli territory. Hamas is a nationalist-Palestinian Islamic terrorist organization, with a world agenda, and a power base in the dense urban districts in Gaza. These districts and their neighborhoods have been "wired" by the Hamas Defense Force. How Hamas came to power in Gaza in the last 2 yrs (I should factcheck my time estimation); and then, as I mentioned, once solidly in power in Gaza, how Hamas institutionalized the dribble of rocket attacks into Israeli populations, a practice already indigenous to some Gazans, finally instituted that continuous dribble into a regular bombardment of Israelis, even civilians, of course: all these details constitute a book in themselves (of which there shall be dozens, we may be sure).

In the second info wave of the news cycle on this story, one got word from Jerusalem Post reporters Yaakov Katz and JPost.com staff (Jan3,2k9, Saturday nite Israel Defense Forces [IDF] "[were sweeping] into northern Gaza Strip." Meanwhile, the Cabinet (an often creaky coalition) "approved the call-up of tens of thousands of reservists, mostly from combat units, but also from the Home Front Command" -- just short, it seems to me, of a total mobilization of the society for war, just in case --

sources said that the goal was to conquer territory in northern Gaza, including rocket launch sites. Soldiers from the Armored Corps, Engineering Corps, and Paratroopers, Givati, Golani brigades were participating in the fighting, with at least four brigades' worth of troops inside the Gaza Strip. ¶ The sources said that a majority of the rockets fired into Beersheba [Israel] and Ashdod [Israel] were launched from the northern Gaza Strip.

One of the major aims of the operation was also to deliver a serious blow to the Hamas military wing, which the IDF estimated had not been severely weakened under the air campaign. ¶[But] The IDF would not enter Gaza City or the refugee camps .... "We must end the hostile actions against Israel... We will not abandon our citizens."

Tens of thousands of IDF combat reservists called up> by Jaakov Katz and JPost.com
AP and Jerusalem Post staff contributed to this report

In the third wave of info, the Israeli cabinet seems to be noting that the close-off date for their overwhelming counter-assault will be the impending arrival of France's Nikolas Sarkozy, an emisssary for world leadership everywhere (but the USA) calling for an immediate ceasefire. Israel will not be able to withstand such a formal diplomatic encounter on the issue, and will agree to a ceasefire, however with conditions I would imagine.

In the West Bank territory of Palestine, under the Palestinian Authority, and the Presidency of Mahmoud Abbas, leading lite of the Fatah Party (descended from Yasser Arafat), another political process is going on. The Abbas forces had been negotiating for six-months for a permanent ceasefire. The Hamas attacks against Israel nevertheless continued. Then Israel withdrew from the West Bank talks, and launched the current counter-assault.

"The fragmentation has really frustrated the population," said Qais Abdul Karim, a Palestinian Legislative Council member who belongs to neither Fatah nor Hamas. "There is no unity in the national movement and no unity in the street. These attacks have increased the divisions. They should have done the opposite.

That dynamic may explain, at least in part, why public reaction to the Gaza strikes in the Israeli-occupied West Bank has been milder than many analysts predicted.

At this very moment there seem to be two Arab entities in conflict, the West Bank (PA, Abbas, Fatah) vs. Gaza (Hamas).

The rift between the two factions hit a critical point in June 2007, when Hamas ousted Fatah security forces from Gaza after bloody street battles. Since then, Hamas, which won the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections, has had sole control of Gaza. Fatah has continued to exercise power in the West Bank, where it has banned Hamas from political activity.

The fortunes of the two territories -- which together with East Jerusalem would make up a future Palestinian state -- have diverged sharply since the Hamas takeover of Gaza. While economic conditions for the 2.5 million Palestinians in the West Bank have improved as international development money poured in, Gaza's 1.5 million people have suffered under a strict Israeli embargo.

In Ramallah, seat of power for the Fatah-run administration and one of the wealthiest cities in the West Bank, businessmen sip lattes in European-style cafes and car dealerships showcase gleaming new Mercedes-Benzes. In Gaza City, the home base of Hamas, donkeys sometimes outnumber cars because of fuel shortages and residents fight over their daily allocation of bread.

Israeli restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in both territories -- which are separated by about 30 miles of Israeli land -- have deepened the sense of disconnection between Gaza and the West Bank.

Israel's attacks on Gaza deepen Palestinian rift by Griff Witte, Jan1,2k9.WaPo.

Now, you will notice that I have reversed the empirical time-order on this sequence, but logically it brings to where we could draw a conclusion, as it were, from Gaza as an "independent" enclave south of Israel, but being Arabic culturally and linguistically, Gaza becomes Egypt's problem. A joint arrangement between the UN and the Organization of Arab States could designate Egypt to have ultimate control of Gaza as a trusteeship. Let Egypt dismantle Hamas.

Juridics Rwanda: Theo Bagosora, Chief of Staff, in Defense Ministry during Rwanda massacre, gets lifetime jail

A colonel and chief of staff for Rwanda's defense ministry, Theoneste Bogosora, was finally convicted after a 5 year-long trial in nearby country of Tanzania, convicted by an international court set-up for the purpose. The criminal tribunal did not find the culprit guilty of a "planned ...extermination from the beginning," reports Chris McGreal, "'Enemies of humanity' jailed for war crimes," Guardian, Dec19,2k8.

The man accused of masterminding the 1994 Rwanda genocide, Theoneste Bagosora, was jailed for life by an international court yesterday as prosecutors described his conviction as the most significant since Nuremberg.

Bagosora, 67, a former colonel who was the chief of staff in Rwanda's defence ministry, was convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes at the end of a five-year trial after judges found that he used the military and an extremist Hutu militia to kickstart the massacre of about 800,000 Tutsis in 100 days.

There are many things that don't add up to this day about the Rwandan genocide. The campaign of Barack Obama made much of the genocide in Darfur, Sudan, noting the USA was remiss in not ending it; but he made no mention of Rwanda's genocide in 1994 which the US did nothing about, presumably because of the hotly-won policy of the Black Congressional Caucus that America should no longer intervene in African matters, even wars and genocides. It was this policy that Clinton followed into inaction.

Because now genocide has been officially defined as a cause for intervention (such interventions are rather limited to Western governments) with very heavy sanctions, Western and any other states possibly ready to act, are cautioned--due to the circumstances of UN policy and the collateral agreements states have entered into for the purpose of prevention. Thus, generally, little or nothing stops the killers or delays the intervention until the victims are dead on a vast scale.

Politicarp

Juridics USA: Here's some Google Reader selections from our publisher

Lawt

Politics Greece: Universities hub of anarchist revolutionary surge among students

Athens Polytechnic University today serves as a hub for revolutionary anarchists leading the violent students protests there, according to Nicole Itano, "A Sanctuary for dissent in Greece?" (CSM, Dec15,2k8).

As Greeks try to make sense of the chaos – and prepare for another week of protests, ranging from sit-ins to nationwide roadblocks – many here are beginning to ask whether the asylum law is protecting free speech or simply harboring criminals.

"The university asylum is for the freedom of movement of ideas, but not of commitment of criminal actions," says George Bergeles, a professor at the Polytechnic who is sympathetic to the students' complaints, but not their harsh tactics. "The law about university asylum I believe is a fantastic achievement of the university movement, but we should protect it by not allowing criminal offenses to happen inside."

The Polytechnic holds historic importance for Greeks. In November 1973, students barricaded themselves inside in rebellion against the country's military junta, which had been in power since 1967. Fearful that the revolt would spread, on Nov. 17 the national police moved in with tanks, killing a still-disputed number of protesters.

The revolutionaries have no goal of replacing one government with another, as they are led apparently by anarchists. The week-long revolution began as a protest against the death of a student shot by a policeman.

Economics USA: Half a million lost jobs in November 2008

In what seems to be the largest figure for job losses since the Seventies among American workers --533,000 across the month of November -- translates to an unemployment rate of 6.7% of the workforce.

This month, the figure and rate will probably rise (at least marginally). Were that not sufficient a problem in itself, we must also keep in mind that people going thru job loss are likely to be "the lowly borrower at risk of foreclosure" as well. Christian Science Monitor's Mark Trumbull article "Housing: the key to economic survival" (Dec12,2k8) lays out the landscape:

The problem reached a stark milestone last week, as the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that 1 in 10 mortgage holders is either in foreclosure or at least a month late on payments.

President-elect Obama, the Democratic-controlled Congress, and the independent Federal Reserve are all considering new ways to stabilize the housing market.

But attention has already turned away from the loan defaulters, especially those trying to keep up with their monthly payments (mortgaged home-owners), political attention re-focusing itself on a bailout of the "Big Three" American-owned automakers. The specific kind of jeopardy that goes with a jobless worker losing a house, is not identical to that of an autoworker losing a job but getting bailed out in some fashion or other (compensation for early retirement and other schemes to reduce the workforce of Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler).

A few days earlier, "Ouch! Borrowers Keep Defaulting After Mortgage Modification" by John Carney (Dec8,2k8, ClusterStock via Yahoo! Finance) reports:

36% of borrowers who had their loans modified in the first two quarters of 2008 re-defaulted after just 3 months. After six months, the redefault rate was roughly 56%. After eight months, 58% of borrowers re-defaulted.

These three inter-related trends are not going to reverse themselves, or shift into reversal as a result of government action in the short run.

Economix

Politics: Pakistan moves against terrorist leader of Mumbai slawter

The ignominious name of slawter-mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi has been added to the list of terrorist leaders cawt!--in Pakistan! This development is extremely important to note, in that the organization which conducted the Mumbai, India, mass-slawter operation a week ago, has up until now been untouchable by the Pakistan govt. Untouchable because that org, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), was sponsored by Pakistan's military intelligence (ISI). Altho it was banned two years ago, many well-informed sources believe that LeT continues to be supported by at least an element in ISI, Pakistan's only intelligence unit, which is firmly embedded in the nation's military forces.

Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi

The photo and the title link reference the story by AP's Chris Brummit with writers Munir Ahmad in Islamabad, Roshan Mughal in Muzaffarabad and Sam Dolnick in New Delhi, India. No photographer is mentioned by AP.

Politicarp

Economics: Tech firm Cisco pioneers new internal business structure

Under the bizarre headline, "Is Republican John Chambers Turning Socialist?," Sarah Lacey (Yahoo!Finance, Dec8,2k8), almost manages to report a major change going on at the Cisco corporation in regard to its internal business structure. This is what happens when reporters and general public are ignorant of the different types of business structures that are possible, including especially, those types more likely to be assisted in a successful differentiation under presentday tech-innovative digital-info conditions. Such conditions characterize much contemporary business and organizational existence.

Better than the snapshot textual report, Yahoo!Finance also carries a h+ly informative interview on video.



Variant business structural models do not tell us anything about socialism vs capitalism. The term "socialism" has been bandied about much these days, by people who think a stark either/or explanation based on single possibles on each side of the binomial setup (vs.) is sufficient to gain quality knowledge of the subject at hand, and many other subjects as well. Using binomial logic here is strategy of (poor quality) reasoning that only covers-over an analysis of the several types of business structures. In this case, the types are either already extant or, thru historical innovation, are possible to be brawt into reality. For the purpose of an accurate typology, the existents must be mapped with more than two options among types. Differentiation of business-structure types is happening at Cisco (the macro-process of historical differentiation of spheres of society and human relationships has been argued well by philosopher Herman Dooyeweerd).

Today, sometimes the Bush-Obama bailouts are called "socialism," but the better word for the type of relation of government to enterprises, in this case, would rather be "corporatism" (where there are no free enterprises, and society as a whole thru the state is the overall body (corpus), while the non-free enterprises within it and thus are under state control (as, say, limbs of the body politic)--the kind of arrangements variously installed by Fascists and Nazis (think of Volkswagen).

But the present American experiment isn't anywhere near a full-fledged corporatism. It's, rather, quasi-corporatist, definitely not socialist, and in either case has nothing to do with the Cisco business internal-structure model or management approach. Cisco is a capitalist business enterprise; has not received any bailout; delivers a portion of its profits as dividends to stockholders; and evidences a good fit between its product line and its innovative management style. In comparison, much corporation leadership seems regressive, witness the banks and financial bandits today who are incapable of innovating sufficiently well to risk a transformation from one type of capitalist-management approach to another more-advanced capitalist-management approach.

That is not to say most American enterprises who use the more historical approaches are, therefore, regressive. Not so, by my estimates. But the leading mortgage, banking, insurance, investment houses, and native auto companies in the USA, receiving or begging for bailouts, are going the corporatist route. All this is due to their poor management as free enterprises, lack of appropriate regulation both internally and by govt agencies for that purpose, and resistance to the proper route toward restructuration--namely, bankruptcy.

EconoMix

Terror: How the Pakistani extremists entered Mumbai, and the aftermath

We reported the recent Mumbai terror earlier (Nov26 refWrite blog entry), and now in the title link we are able to convey the spooky, movie-like opening of the story, how the operatives from Pakistan came ashore in Mumbai's commercial capital (Keith Bradshaw "Armed teams sowed chaos with precision," Nov28,2k8, NYT).

The takeover and then the counter-seige of India's commandos took three days, ending Saturday morning (Nov28), as detailed by Somini Sengupta and Keith Bradshaw (same date, NYT):

Soldiers were still combing the [Taj Mahal] hotel, going room to room in search of remaining gunmen, but the siege appeared finally to have ended, J. K. Dutt, director general of the National Security Guard, an elite commando force, said in the news conference at 9 a.m. Firefighters were permitted to begin pouring water over the flames that had burned out of control in the hotel’s lower floors for as much as an hour while the commandos battled the terrorists.

It was the third day of a siege that has shaken India, raised tensions with neighboring Pakistan and prompted questions about the failure of the authorities to anticipate the tragedy or to react swiftly enough as it unfolded.

Also under assault, adding up to a total of 10 sites, was the Oberoi hotel, the Leopold café, and Nariman House (a hospitality center maintained by a Hasidic Orthodox group serving the 4,000-10,000 Jews of India and, of course, Jews visiting Mumbai from anywhere around the world). The assault on the House was thwarted from above, when Indian commandos rapelled down on ropes from helicopters onto/into the House, already on Thursday, clearing it out before the Taj could be cleaned out--which took another fateful day.

Yet, as soon as I heard that Nariman House was a Jewish site, I felt earlier speculation that the attackers might be extremist Hindus, whose leading badmouther, Narendra Modi, had arrived outside the Taj to stir the throng against the government; I neverthless discarded the notion that blame here belongs to Hindu far-out politics (SS, "Crisis may shift India's political landscape," Nov28,2k8). India's nationalist Hindu extremists do not seem to be fixated against Jews, not purveyors of anti-Judaism: yet certainly they are anti-Islamic. Most of India's (1.3 billion) Hindu population, hopefully, are neither anti-Jew nor anti-Muslim. But some Hindus are vociferously anti-Islam. Since India's general population is 1.3 billion, we should note that Hindus constitute 80.4%, Muslims 13.4%, Jews 0.4%. [After Muslims, Christians are the largest community (2.3%), and while seeming also to be statistically insignificant, a process of persecution has been underway against them by Hindu extremists, now for sometime.] My statistics are from Wikipedia.

India: terror in Mumbai

What has emerged since the Terror at the Taj is simply that the attackers were anti-India, Islamic extremists from Pakistan and perhaps Kashmir. It is said that there were only 10 terrorists, but that figure seems based on the count of the eye-witness of the original landing at the dock, and is probably true about that group. Nevertheless, the figure 10 seems definitively settled, "India faces reckoning as terror toll eclipses 170 (SS & KB, Nov29,2k8, NYT):

The police chief in Mumbai, Hasan Gafoor, said nine gunmen were killed, the last of whom fell out of the terrace of the Taj Hotel on Saturday morning as the siege ended. ... A man who is suspected to be the 10th gunman was arrested; the police say he is a 21-year-old Pakistani, Ajmal Amir Kasab.

Already, Kasab seems to be spilling his guts, at least to some extent.

However, days before the Mumbai terror, from Pakistan Daily via UPI, came word that India's extremist Hindus are not at all sublimely pacifist. "India shocked by discovery of 1st Hindu terror cell" (unsigned, Nov23,2k8).

Returning to our main theme of the Mumbai assault, Kasab is a Pakistani Muslim and an operative of LET, which works out of the Muslim majority population of Kashmir, struggling ostensibly for Kashmir's independence and definitely in active hostility toward India. "5 Lessons from the deadly Mumbai terrorist attacks," Alex Kingsbury (Dec1,2k8, US News & World Report):

While it's too early to know for sure how many terrorists were involved in the three-day shooting spree in Mumbai, counterterrorism officials in the United States and India are already sifting through the evidence in search of clues.

A Pakistan-based militant group, Lashkar-e-Taiba (Army of the Pure), or LET, is the top suspect in the three-day terrorist rampage that left more than 170 people dead, U.S. officials say. "While it's too early to jump to any final conclusions on who may have been responsible for the Mumbai attacks, there are some solid indications that people associated with [LET] were involved," says one U.S. counterterrorism official.

The brazenness of the incident combined with its potential to destabilize the region already has the counterterrorism world searching for lessons learned.

I'm sure we'll soon hear more about Kasab and LET.

Update (Dec4,2k8):

TIME mag's Simon Robinson outlines 4 terrorist networks possibly involved

US backs India's claim against Pakistan intelligence agency (ISI)

Politicarp

Pisteutics & Culture: Here comes Merry ol' Christmas

Yesterday was the first Sunday of Advent 2008, the annual liturgical season that ends Christmas Eve. We Christians are celebrating the First Coming of Jesus Christ, Christmas Day itself celebrates the Incarnation, God becoming flesh in the body of Jesus, beginning with the Feast of the Nativity. Advent's weeks coincide with Mother Mary's pregnancy during which many related events of the Bible story have their own celebrations during the overall lead-up time. Where Christians are numerous in relation to the general population, Advent and Nativity are also celebrated outside the Church, in public, for the whole world to see. Already in Toronto, l+tes are up on certain festival-oriented streets and on many homes. As Advent proceeds, some streets in this metropolis will experience a steady stream of slow-moving automobiles touring to catch a glimpse of the most brilliantly decked-out lit-up homes.

Then there's the stores, and the consumers so bent on purchasing that this year one Wal-Mart store opened its doors only to experience a consumer trampled to death by other onrushing consumers. But aside from that exceptional mayhem, with a vigourous Hat Tip to Steve Bishop, the cultural uptake of the liturgical events of Christmas afford comparisons with the economic aspect of the culture as it impinges on these faith-chosen days of Winter. Steve's post from YouTube prompted me to follow suit (of course, not that Steve wears suits):



Merry Christmas and clean water to all,
Owlb

Economics USA: New aid to homeowners is "spitting in the wind"

"Fed Risks ‘Spitting in the Wind’ With New Aid Pledges" by Bloomberg's Craig Torres and Scott Lanman, Nov23,2k8 (3rd update)

The Federal Reserve’s new $800 billion effort to combat the financial crisis is designed to make credit more accessible to shaken consumers who aren’t sure they want more debt.

Households and lenders may not respond much because of the wealth destruction from plunging property and stock values, and the deepening economic slump, economists say. That means banks may end up returning the Fed’s new liquidity through deposits at the central bank.

“We are sort of spitting in the wind,” said Michael Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners LP in Greenwich, Connecticut. “Banks won’t be throwing a lot of loans out there when they fear -- rationally -- those loans may not be paid back.”

Policy makers aim to kick-start markets for loans to students, car buyers, credit-card borrowers and small businesses with a new $200 billion program. Backed in part by the Treasury, the Fed will become a new buyer in the market for consumer loans at a time when many traditional holders of the assets, such as off-balance sheet bank units, have collapsed or been dissolved.

More later....

Economix

Economics USA: New Fed move extends help to homeowners, both those already mortgage-foreclosed and those still-struggling to make payments

Headline:

Bailout Shocker:
Fed Government's Move Works!
H o m e o w n e r s . . . H e l p e d !

Nov26,2k8 10:34am EST by Henry Blodget


refWrite: Joe Weisenthanl, editor of ClusterStock, wrote a spoof, the background story of which is Ayn Rand's Objectivism. The title of Joe W.'s piece "Atlas Hedged" (Nov26,2k8) plays with the title of Rand's sect-revered work, the last and thickest of her ideological novels, famously entitled Atlas Shrugged. Joe is alluding to the role of Hedge-Fund funk in The Crisis that continues to rage on, in real life, differently from than phantasmagoria in the imaginal world of libertarian or objectivist fictioneering.

Braced by Weisenthal's sanguine satire, Blodget has his own go at it, but in a more analytic way:

The latest Trash Asset Removal Plan, the $800 billion one the government announced yesterday, is actually making a difference, at least so far.

One of the goals of the plan is to reduce mortgage rates through government buying of mortgage-backed securities, and Fannie and Freddie debt. And it worked immediately. Yesterday saw the biggest mortgage refinancing activity in a year.

If this trend continues, it will allow some homeowners to get out from under onerous adjustable rate mortgages and into cheaper fixed-rate ones--possibly even ones they can afford (at least until they get laid off). This, in turn, will free up some debt-service payments to be used on other things.

Economy USA:
Homeowners and Mortgages

I shoud add that the orthographic semiotics of the bold typefaces, underlines, and bold italics in the foregoing are my own interpretive retexting of the delitefully provocative Wiesenthal. Brief, sweet & sour enuff.

But Blodget pursues the chase (no pun avoidable!) passing Wiesenthal on the road. Then Blodget's done, it seems ... but then again, at length he quotes Wall Street Journal, (is the quoted text another piece of his own?, I wonder...or not). But certainly quoted at length, about the immediate impact of the Fed Government's apparently savvy political-economic action luring banks to adjust mortgage rates downward. WSJ:

Some brokers said it was the most activity they've seen in at least one year, although there was no way to determine to volume of refinancing...

Rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages dropped by roughly half a percentage point to about 5.5%, for borrowers with good credit scores and substantial equity in their homes, say mortgage brokers and lenders.

While the initial flurry of calls came from people seeking to refinance, economists predicted lower rates also will spur some home buying among bargain-seekers. The surge in refinancing will help the overall economy by putting more cash in consumers' pockets and reducing the pressure on some borrowers struggling to make payments...

The government's latest plans won't fix all the problems bedeviling the housing and credit markets. And it's not clear whether the most recent initiative will keep mortgage interest rates down over the long run.

Yet, at this particular time, a ray of sunshine, a note of hope for the future of the least-of-all-to-be-pitied, the American economic system.

Economix

Terror: Major assault on India's financial-hub city, Mumbai (Bombay)

Somini Sengupta reports Nov26,2k8 from Mumbai for New York Times:

NEW DELHI — Coordinated terror attacks struck the heart of Mumbai, India’s commercial capital, Wednesday night, killing dozens in machine-gun and grenade assaults on at least two five-star hotels, the city’s largest commuter train station, a historic movie theater and a hospital. There were unconfirmed reports of hostages having been taken at one of the hotels.

Mumbai police control room said at least 75 people had died and 240 injured, according to preliminary reports.

This assault was h+ly weaponized, and raises the level of continuing terrorist attacks in this part of India. Altho the chief suspect organization is thawt to be part of ongoing but heightened Islamicist extremists, recently police have been pointing to "a Hindu terror network as well," having made "several arrests."

Whoever the perpetrators prove to be, besides civilians and rank-and-file police,"several senior officers were killed...including the head of the Anti-Terrorism Squad.

A sad day for one of the world's thriving democracies.

Politicarp

Update:
MarketWatch, "Mumbai terror attacks kill 119; markets are closed," Nov27,2k89, by Anthony Lazarus, Lisa Twaronite, Nick Godt, Varahabhotla Phani Kumar, John Letzing. A day-after overview, detailing the financial targets hit and some anticipated outcomes for India's economy. The article also outlines the history of terror attacks in modernday India.

Politics: USA: Gates to stay on as Defense Secretary in Obama's initial Cabinet

Yahoo! News carries a report by Associated Press's Beth Fouhy and David Espo, "Officials: Obama to ask Gates to stay at Pentagon," Nov25,2k8. The re-appointment, however temporary, underscores the remarkably astute moves President-Elect Barack Obama is making generally in shaping his Cabinet and Adminstration for its unprecedented tasks. Robert Gates is a registered Independent, appointed first by Pres. George W. Bush to replace the erstwhile Donald Rumsfeld, whose strategy is largely claimed to have failed in Iraq. Gates now has been appointed to the same post, by Bush's successor.

Meanwhile, former Republican candidate for President, John McCain, will continue to serve in the US Senate. He will be traveling to Iraq and Afghanistan soon, according to a Yahoo! News video report.

Update:
Gates to stay on for a year.
AP Analysis: Obama opts for establishment advisers. Excellent pix of Gen James Jones (retired Marine) as the new Administration's National Security Advisor in the Whitehouse.

Politicarp

War: Iraq a stopgap for Afganstn-Pakstn's enhanced Taliban, Paul Rogers' defeatist swipe at Gen. Petraeus

Paul Rogers constructs the "two wars" into one, the Afghan war, regarding which the non-NATO coalition's efforts in Iraq was only a diversion and rearguard action. No matter that the war in Iraq was older and was against genocide, against the ending of which genocide the Weapons of Mass Destruction argument only served as a supplemental (recall Obama's coy rhetoric claiming the USA had no reason to be engaged in hostilities in Iraq, whereas the genocide in Darfur must be stopped by the USA and its allies). Rogers is hanging a lot of rthetoric, as did Obama, on a capricious hypothesis. So what if there were no WMD's awaiting our invading troops in Iraq; Saddam's genocidal regime had to go.

Now, there are two democracies of sorts functioning in the Muslim Mideast (counting Afghanstn in that designation, at least for the moment).

Of course, two new flawed Mideast democracies later, Rogers is correct that now there is one war. But, having come to share at least implicitly this element of the Petraeus Doctrine of one war, Rogers neglects to give a good accounting of changes in the scope of this now vastly militarized regional conflict in the Mideast. Changes: not only is the Taliban augmented in Pakistan (where, we add that a third democracy has been renewed after the sloughing-off of military dictator Musharraf), but that augmented and enhanced Taliban coalition with tribal/clan entities in Pakstn regularly crosses the border into Afghnstn with considerable impunity. Petraeus is presentlly taking action against the Taliban's power in both countries (while still he is coordinatively active in the third country, Iraq where apparrently Al Qaida has lost its grip).

Paul Rogers (Open Democracy, Nov20,2k8, click the title link) is an old hand at obfuscating in the service of defeatism. President-Elect Barack Obama would do well to dialogue closely, first of all, with Gen. David Petraeus.

Politics: Opposed campaigns compare notes on bipartisan roster of Fed appointee possibles

Steve Clemons, blogging on Huffington Post, Nov22,2k8, tells us:

A senior Obama campaign official shared with The Washington Note and Huffington Post that in July 2008, the McCain and Obama camps began to work secretly behind the scenes to assemble large rosters of potential personnel for the administration that only one of the candidates would lead.

Lists comprised of Democrats and Republicans were assembled, sorted into areas of policy expertise, so that the roster could be called on after the election by either the Obama or McCain transition teams.

This kind of out-of-sight coordination is rare between battling presidential camps and provides some indication that both Obama and McCain intended to draw expertise into their governments from both sides of the aisle -- or at least they wanted to appear interested in doing so if the information leaked out about the list development process.

Fascinating tidbit on cooperation behind battle lines.

-- Steve Clemons publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note

Of course, some of the nasties among Huffington's commenters rushed to this one in order to expose each his/her own conspiracy theory.

Politicarp

Politics: wild satire of last election campaign

Politicarp

Politics: USA Presidency 2009 and new Congress begin to shape up

As President-Elect Obama makes a few appointments to staff for his term, the Congressional situation regarding a number of seats begins to shape up as well
("Democrats Gain as Stevens Loses His Senate Race," Nov19,2k8). Of primary note is the Senate's refusal to seat Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska to yet another term, altho just re-elected (his trial for financial misdeeds, being his stumbling block).

That leaves an empty seat, the filling of which is subject to the appointment by Alaska's governor, Sarah Palin, recent national Repubican candidate for the vice-prez job -- which raises the question whether she might choose to self-designate herself into the Senate.

Politicarp

New computer, arms better, etc.

I've got a new computer, and I'll try some occasional blogging. My arms have not fully recovered, so I'll not be promising much of anything.

President-elect Barack Obama will soon officially take office (Jan 2k9).




Update Nov12,2k8: In updating and correcting my initial spelling of the President-Elect's first name, correctly "Barack," I also want to add a URL for an important twist in the Congressional Dem's planned economic legislation, " Democrats Craft Economic Plan for the country and the globe, at least ostensibly.

Politicarp

Suspension of blogging, except occasional posts

Illness, vacations, moving, carpal tunnel, etc, means that refWrite will suspend regular posting for the rest of summer 2007. -- The Publisher

Politics: North Korea: Army officer become Christian to be executed for his faith and discipleship

Brother Pleads for Life of North Korean Facing Death for Faith;
Brownback, Other Senators, Support Cause


WASHINGTON, July 12 /Christian Newswire/ -- Son Jong Hoon, who is visiting the United States from his home in South Korea, today pleaded with the world to pressure North Korea to release his elder brother awaiting public execution for the crime of simply being a Christian.

Photo: Son Jong Nam (R), with younger brother, Son Jong Hoon (L), April 2004, Yeongil, China.

For more than a year, Son Jong Nam, former North Korean Army officer turned underground evangelist, has been beaten, tortured and held in a bleak, North Korean death row basement jail in this capital city. He has been sentenced to public execution as an example to the North Korean people.

"My only purpose in life right now is to save my brother," the younger Son said. "I pray to God for my brother's safety."

Son Jong Hoon made his plea at a news conference at the National Press Club today. He was accompanied by representatives of The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) and staff members from the office of Sen. Sam Brownback (Rep.-Kan.).

VOM, an international organization that assists persecuted Christians around the world, launched a global campaign Tuesday, calling on people in the United States and other countries to write letters and send emails to North Korean, United Nations and U.S. State Department officials on Son Jong Nam's behalf.

VOM was been joined in the initiative by Brownback, a noted supporter of human rights for North Korean refugees. Brownback sent letters last week, also signed by Senators Baucus (D-Mont.), Durbin (D-Ill.), Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Vitter (R-La.) asking U.S. Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice and U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to work to secure the release of the Christian prisoner.

VOM is directing people go to its web site, www.prisoneralert.com, where they can compose a personal letter of support and encouragement to Son. The letter is to be mailed to the North Korean delegation to the United Nations, along with a cover letter asking the North Korean government to spare Son's life, release him from prison immediately, report on his current status and deliver the personal letter to Son.

"We are asking for prayers for Mr. Son, but also that people around the world take action on his behalf," said Todd Nettleton, director of media development for VOM. "Jesus said ministering to a prisoner was like ministering to Himself. Every letter and email can make a difference."

Some years ago the elder Son complained to the North Korean Central People's Committee when his pregnant wife, while being investigated by the secret police, was kicked in the stomach and miscarried. He made plans to leave North Korea after being pressured to drop the matter.

Son defected to China in 1998 with his wife, son and brother. His wife died after arriving there. It was in China that he met a South Korean missionary and became a Christian. Mr. Son continued his religious studies and felt called to be an evangelist in North Korea.

But before he could return home, Son was arrested by Chinese police in 2001 and sent back to North Korea, charged with sending missionaries into his native country. He was imprisoned and brutally tortured for three years.

Son was released on parole in May 2004 and expelled from Pyongyang to Chongjin to work at a rocket research institute. However, his health was so bad when he was released that he was unable to walk. But after receiving medical treatment, he went back to China to meet with his brother.

Son was arrested again when he returned to North Korea in January 2006, and has remained in prison since. The last word of him came in February. It is suspected that because he is being kept in the capitol city, North Korean officials view him as a special case and perhaps are keeping him alive, if barely, for unknown reasons.

VOM has been launching helium-filled balloons, printed with either the Gospel of Mark or the text of a tract called "How to Know God" into North Korea for years, said Nettleton. They also smuggle in copies of an audio drama called "He Lived Among Us" and have sent copies of The New Testament in Korean to northern China through a VOM program called " Bibles Unbound".

The Voice of the Martyrs, headquartered in Bartlesville, Okla., is a non-profit, interdenominational organization with a vision for aiding Christians around the world who are being persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ, fulfilling the "Great Commission" and educating the world about the ongoing persecution of Christians.


Christian Newswire